Lyria had already guessed since yesterday that Eric probably didn't know about Mana Sensing, and it wasn’t strange, as this village was too isolated.

  She didn't hide it and informed him truthfully.

  "By sitting in a relaxed posture with spine erect, one needs to try to sense the Mana in the atmosphere. Those who fail to sense Mana or differentiate Mana from the thin air will have a difficult time becoming a Mana Wielder. Those who can, need only to gently guide the Mana in the atmosphere inside their Mana Veins. After sufficiently culminating enough Mana inside these Mana Veins while also maintaining a smooth flow through them, 'Mana Space' will develop. Then one can become a Mana Wielder and successfully wield Mana, like how one can wield stamina in one's body."

  Eric nodded. He understood the basic mechanism and would try it later in his room. There were still some questions he needed answers for, so he continued asking, "How does one sense Mana Veins? Also, how does one guide the Mana from outside to inside one's body?"

  Lyria calmly answered with the same low volume, "When one can sense the Mana in the atmosphere, they can also sense the 'Mana Veins' inside their body. Everything has these veins- even objects, I’ve heard. When one can sense them properly within their own body, observing how Mana naturally courses through their Mana Veins, they can slowly study these Mana flows. Eventually, they will gain slightly more control over them. After achieving sufficient control, one can consciously move atmospheric Mana through these veins. The whole process is known as 'Mana Channeling'."

  Lyria didn't wait for Eric to ask about 'Mana Space' and continued explaining, "To become a Mana Wielder, one has to open 'Mana Space' within themselves. Usually, it is as vast as one's body's length and size, and the whole of it is known as 'Mana Body.' Size is not important, or so I have heard. What is important is that one can finally have an entire Mana Body matching the length of their physical body. It is like having a new body, but not like the physical one. This Mana Body remains illusory or quite incomplete until a certain Rank, but one can become a Mana Wielder just by having Mana Space developed. It is like having a vessel to hold water, and Mana Veins are the openings to pour water in or out. For the initial three Ranks, these Mana Veins still act like storage for Mana."

  "Becoming a Mana Wielder is, overall, a big leap toward one's evolution. Many things change for the said individual, as for how or what that is, I also don't know, at least until I become one."

  Eric nodded gratefully. Lyria was quite considerate toward an illiterate fool such as himself; she had explained everything without even waiting for him to ask further.

  "Thank you for your explanation." Eric paused and addressed the reason he had come for. "You should have heard from Grandma that you girls will be admitted to school tomorrow. Today, I will give a small review on the subject that our age should be aware of. Just to confirm- you girls already know how to read and write in Celestian, as well as basic mathematics, correct?"

  Lyria nodded. Not only did they know those things, they also knew painting, dancing, and playing some instruments. The children of the Big Noble families had to learn all of those at a very early age so they could focus on their ‘Spiritual Base’ after becoming Mana Wielders. As for what exactly a ‘Spiritual Base’ was, she didn’t know that either.

  Eric nodded, satisfied; his workload was now greatly reduced. "In about an hour, I’ll return with some books, and then we’ll review them for your exam tomorrow." Within that hour, he also wanted to try the Mana Sensing Technique, he was very excited about it.

  Lyria nodded in response.

  As soon as Eric returned to his room, Riya quickly spoke, "You can try Mana Sensing later! First, books! Start from the grade one stuff!" She personally wanted more knowledge and information over other things. Unlike Eric, she loved all information.

  Eric shrugged and got to it.

  He pulled out all his books from the extra wardrobe in his room and put them on his table.

  Last year, Bella Noll had provided him with all the books up to grade ten, as he wanted to finish all those studies within a single week- and he succeeded, since it was very basic for an advanced 21st-century adult. Ringwood Town's school knowledge mostly consisted of what was going on around its surroundings, not some top-level science studies.

  Of course, most of that knowledge had successfully been forgotten by Eric’s advanced 21st-century rotten soul.

  Eric sat on his chair and began flipping through page after page, from grade one to the final tenth grade. After he was done, he asked, "How was it?"

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  "Good! I have photocopied everything." Riya nodded with satisfaction. "And now, time for the main dish! Open that sexy-looking thick book on your table!" She was already salivating.

  Eric rolled his eyes. He had already grasped Riya's dark fetish, so he nodded and proceeded with the library book that he had picked up the day before.

  It took another ten minutes to finish page by page. Following that, he asked the same question, "How was it?"

  Riya laughed like a mad scientist, "Mahaha! All done! Do you want me to send you the data in your head right now?"

  Eric nodded without hesitation. He needed to see the effect himself first to believe it. He still added, "Just send me the first 5 pages."

  It was just an experiment, and he also didn't want to overwhelm himself with too much unnecessary information. If he traveled across the Silvia Kingdom in the future, he would just ask Riya then.

  Riya did what Eric asked and sent him all the data on the first 5 pages of the thick book related to Silvia Kingdom's tourist spots.

  Eric’s eyes soon widened in amazement. He obtained every single piece of information, including the depicted pictures. And he didn't even feel any pain- in fact, he felt as if he already knew everything, and suddenly, all five pages of information surfaced in his mind.

  It was a very strange experience for him. The details were so vivid, as if those pages were hanging right in front of his eyes. Most importantly, he comprehended everything—almost as if he hadn't just received a photocopy of the memory but also understood the information in depth.

  It was fantastic, but Eric didn't like such an overwhelming dump of data, so he strictly ordered, "Riya, I can collect information, but don't dump it all on me at once. Just send me what I need to know in the future or inform me through conversation. I already feel like vomiting with just these five pages!"

  Riya laughed. She knew Eric very well and how much he disliked too much pointless information.

  "Fine! I won't run away anywhere anyway. I'm always here to support you! So, with that spirit, go to the town's library today! And let me copy everything! Muhahah!"

  Eric quickly shook his head. "Not today, tomorrow. When I take Lyria and Livy to school, I'll visit the library while they continue with their exams. Hm... Now that I recall, I don't remember seeing any seating in that library..."

  Seriously, what kind of library has no places to sit and read? It's just forcing people not to touch and mess with too many books for too long. That old man Paul was a true mastermind!

  Eric was completely impressed by that book pervert.

  Since their conversation was done, Eric sat at the other empty table. Mattresses were too soft for his taste, definitely not something he preferred to sit on when meditating.

  He sat with the same posture as Livy and closed his eyes.

  After around five minutes, Eric asked Riya with just his thoughts, eyes still shut, "Riya, can you sense it? Is that Mana in the air?"

  He could already sense it, and it wasn't hard. It was similar to distinguishing another smell in the air, but 'Mana' is not a smell; the closest analogy would be a different 'temperature' or a 'feel' in the air.

  Riya answered calmly, "I can't sense anything different at this moment, as it is outside your body. Maybe after you become more used to it." She wasn't surprised by her inability, as Mana was beyond the basic five senses. What confused her was that she thought she could clearly 'see' Eric's insides, yet even so, she could not see those 'Mana Veins.'

  Eric nodded internally. He was confused about something, so he asked, "Although I am conversing with you through thoughts, why is my concentration not wavering?" It was quite strange, especially because he was merely a beginner in Mana Sensing, thinking anything should have distracted him.

  "I am also not too sure," Riya answered in a calm tone. "But since this Mind Space has come alive with my birth, perhaps this is one of its uses."

  Eric no longer spoke or rather 'thought', and started focusing on his internal 'Mana Veins,' where 'Mana' was automatically channeling through. It was a bit tedious to keep the focus constant, as he was a mere beginner, but more or less, he was getting better at it.

  "I can somewhat see now…" Riya murmured.

  “Ah...?!"

  While Eric was feeling Mana coursing through his 'non-existent' Mana Veins, Riya suddenly exclaimed, which almost making him lose his concentration.

  "What's wrong?" Eric asked, though he thought he should stop now. An hour must have passed; he needed to go teach his new students.

  Riya was startled and also worried. She spoke with some hesitation, "I think... You might also have a similar problem as those little girls that your Grandma just spoke of..."

  Eric opened his eyes wide. He sprang up onto his table and cried out, "WHAT?!" Thankfully, the ceiling was high enough, and he didn't bang his head.

  Eric was horrified. Didn't that mean he couldn't become a Mana Wielder for life? Or at least, until he found those legendary Elixirs?

  Or perhaps suicide was the true way to go?

  'What the hell! My adventures ended before they even began! Are those girls' diseases contagious? Damn… should I jump off the rooftop and pray for a new reincarnation?'

  "Hey! If you die, I will also die completely! Whether you reincarnate or not!" Riya growled.

  Eric was stunned. He'd nearly forgotten that fact.

  He waved his hands. "Come on, you know I wasn't serious about it. I was just shocked. Why do you say I have the same problems as Lyria and Livy?"

  Riya replied, but her tone was unsure, "Maybe you will take some time to feel it, or perhaps never will, but as far as I can 'see,' some junctions in your Mana Veins have some injury, I think."

  “You either received some sort of attack or had some kind of accident while you were just a baby, as it is quite clear those injuries are quite old. It may not cause any problems for your physical growth, but if being a 'Mana Wielder' is what I think it is, then you definitely need those veins fixed." She sighed with regret, but not all hope was lost yet.

  Eric exhaled and sat back on his table, leaning his back against the wall behind. He stared blankly at the ceiling and wondered what might have occurred in the past...

  "Riya, since you can see my memories, can you also see the parts that I don't remember from my toddler days?"